


shark week

by skirt



Category: Naruto
Genre: Gen, Menstruation, Trans Male Character, but idk only really mentions of that so u know don't worry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-09-06
Updated: 2014-09-06
Packaged: 2018-02-16 09:36:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 729
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2264736
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/skirt/pseuds/skirt
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Maybe you were just overly oblivious, but maybe he was just good at covering it up. Hell, it could have been both.</p>
            </blockquote>





	shark week

**Author's Note:**

> have u ever wanted to make a pun so bad you wrote an fic for it b/c that's me 
> 
> another note: i'm not even caught up yet so forgive me if any of this isn't canon-compliant or mischaracterized but also i don't care that much lmao

You avoid Itachi at all costs when he's like this - he's snappy and has little patience for anything you say or do and he smells funny, almost in an appealing way that you swear you recognize, but it isn't really worth hanging around. He's small and still a kid, but he could kick your ass with minimal effort.

It took you months after you'd been assigned partners to figure out what was going on. Maybe you were just overly oblivious, but maybe he was just good at covering it up. Hell, it could have been both. 

You'd walked into your shared motel bathroom because you assumed it'd be empty. (To be fair, he should have locked the door; You never knocked and he knew it.) Itachi was sitting on the floor reading a book you think you remember seeing from the front desk and a hot compress you didn't know he had held to his stomach. He dropped both objects in his hands and he jumped up. 

"Kisame. Get out." 

You frowned, "But I'm just-"

"Now," he cut you off before coming towards you and pushing you out of the bathroom with his hands. 

You let yourself be walked out - He wouldn't be able to force you anywhere with strength alone, but he evidently didn't want you in there. Itachi shut the door and locked it for good measure. 

"You're okay though, right?" You asked through the door. "I don't remember you getting hurt." 'Probably ate something bad', you thought grimly. God knows you've had some bad cases of food poisoning from these places. 

You strained to hear anything from the other side before he let out a small sigh. "I'm fine." He was quieter than before, but he seemed honest, at the very least. "It's-" Itachi hesitated. "...Nevermind. I'll tell you another time." 

And so he did. Though, probably not intentionally and most likely much sooner than he's been expecting, judging from his reaction. He'd been avoiding your conversations since you last saw him in the bathroom. 

This time, not three days later early in the morning in some dingy cave you'd stopped to stay the night in, you walked in on him changing. 

He had pants on, at least, but his top half was bare and he had... Oh. His hands immediately shot up to cover his chest with his shirt. 

"Um, I'm gonna." You hesitated, "...Go." And you spun around and darted out of the cave. 

Well, that explained... a lot. Two? Maybe it was three months ago, he got a nasty cut on his ribs from a kunai and he wouldn't let you stitch him up once you'd gotten to a cave to rest for the night. Another time, you think it was a few weeks before then, you were trying to get to some small fishing town on the coast, and Itachi kept taking breaks every few hours. You ended up getting there two hours later than you'd been planning and when you asked what he was doing, he ignored you. 

You left him alone for an hour and wandered the forest nearby, during which you debated whether or not this was something you should talk to him about; He was a good partner - smart as hell and incredible at what he does - and you didn't particularly want to get a new one because it got too uncomfortable between you. Really, you could just let this be and pretend you saw nothing, but that just wasn't how you did things. 

Apparently Itachi had been thinking the same thing: He was standing at the mouth of the cave and made a gesture with his head at you as you circled the trees yet again. You made your way back up to it and stood awkwardly, waiting for him to speak. You'd planned on letting him explain whatever it was that needed explaining, but he was quiet. 

Maybe you should start instead? 

"So you're a -"

"No." 

Itachi cut you off before you could finish. Probably a good thing. You didn't need to be on his bad side. 

"...No," You repeated. "Okay."

An uncomfortable silence settled between you. 

"Um... That's why you were in the bathroom, right?" Itachi looked up to meet your eyes but didn't respond. "You know..." You cracked a small smile, "shark week?" 

His reaction was of instant disgust. "Don't ever say that again." 


End file.
